Puffskein
Join Date: Aug 2011 Location: Houston, Texas
Posts: 2,394
Hogwarts RPG Name: Hope Archard Ravenclaw Fifth Year |
Violet wished very much she could be doing this exercise with Machiavelli, but since he wasn't here, she prepared to try to bond with the school owl before her. She sat there for what seemed a long time, staring into the owl's eyes, with the owl staring back.
Then she hesitantly stretched two fingers through the bars and stroked the owl's back. The owl turned its head all the way around, as owls do, and nudged her hand with its beak--okay, it seemed to like that. Violet continued petting it, using three fingers now, and suddenly felt the owl give her a soft nip--oh, she had forgotten to put on the gloves! But it hadn't really hurt (and she knew an owl could really bit hard it if wanted to). It was more to get her attention. Violet looked down and saw that a few small underfeathers were sticking to the rough places around her nails and withdrew her hand.
She added a feather to one of her vials of potion and watched excitedly as the liquid began to bubble furiously. When it slowed down, she picked up the vial and looked closely at the potion. Well, she always claimed her potions were safe and well-brewed, so she ought to be able to trust them on herself now. "Skoal!" she said, remembering the toast her governess used to use, and raising her vial at the owl, she drank it all in one gulp.
She swallowed, not sure what she thought it tasted like, whether good or bad, and closed her eyes. When she opened them, the owl had moved a bit closer to her on its perch and was still staring intently into her eyes. "Uh, hello there, owl," she said, feeling a bit foolish. 'Hello there, human girl.' Violet was startled to hear the words, not sure if they were coming from the owl or if they were in her own head. "Ah...are you all right?" Violet had been worried about all the school animals all term, so this was the next thing she could think of to say. She was usually full of words in her head, but trying to speak to an owl was so strange that she was having trouble thinking. 'Terrible, can't leave cages, stuffy room, no windows, terrible smell, all animals together, noisy all the time.' "I'm so sorry!" Violet exclaimed. "It's not our idea--it's those hooded people" (if they were people) "they took you all away from us and won't let us see you. I think they don't want any messages getting out of Hogwarts." She picked up one of the treats and slipped it into the cage, holding it out to the owl.
The owl delicately pecked up the treat and sat crunching it for a minute or two. 'Thank you, that was kind. I would take your message if I could.' "That's nice of you to offer. By the way---in that room, you haven't seen a magpie, have you? A black and white bird? Kind of rude and likes to steal things? But, I mean--he's really nice when you get to know him."
The owl sat for a few moments like it was thinking. 'No, no black and white birds, only cats, toads, and owls,' it replied eventually. "Oh. Okay, thanks anyway." Violet sat a few minutes, wondering again what happened to Mack. Before she could focus her thoughts, she felt a tear or two welling up in her eyes. "Oh, owl, things are really terrible here. But I expect the school owls will be okay, they might need you. But if you get a chance, fly away from here as fast as you can, and don't come back."
The owl just looked back at her and hooted softly. Violet wasn't sure if that was because the potion was wearing off, or if it just didn't have anything else useful to say.
|